Beaumont Study Finds Infrared Laser Scanning Can Detect Plaques Associated with Post-Procedure Heart Attacks
Study published in American Heart Association Circulation Cardiovascular Interventions Journal
 |
|
A two-dimensional, color-coded map (above) |
Heart catheterization procedures, such as angioplasty and stenting, are very successful in opening clogged heart arteries to prevent a heart attack.
But in 3 to 5 percent of cases, plaque contents dislodged during the stent procedure can travel downstream in the heart artery leading to a heart attack or other complications after the procedure.
Beaumont Health System research found that fatty plaque deposits at risk of causing post-procedure heart attacks may be identified with near-infrared laser scanning. The study results are published in the Oct. 18 American Heart Association Circulation Cardiovascular Interventions journal.
“These findings show that it is possible to identify complication-prone plaque with near-infrared spectroscopy so that steps may be taken to protect the patient from post-procedure heart attack or other complications,” says Jim Goldstein, M.D., study author and director of Cardiology Research and Education at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak.
These steps may include medications, the use of stents (wire mesh scaffolds to prop an artery open) or the use of embolic protection devices (to trap plaque or debris from travelling and blocking off a vessel and blood flow).
The multi-center study looked at 62 patients who received near-infrared spectroscopy scanning with the LipiScan™ Coronary Imaging System prior to their heart procedure. The LipiScan™ system consists of a near-infrared laser, a fiber optic heart catheter and an automated pullback and rotation device. The system performs chemical measurements of the plaque content of heart arteries that are displayed in a two-dimensional, color-coded map called a “Chemogram™” to identify the presence of fatty, lipid-core plaques at high risk of rupture.
These large, fatty plaques are associated with a 50 percent risk of post-procedure heart attack compared with only a 4.2 percent risk for plaques that are not large and fatty.
Another randomized study currently underway is looking at the use of an embolic protection device in patients with large, fatty plaques identified with near-infrared spectroscopy to prevent post-procedure heart attack.
About Beaumont Heart Care
Beaumont is Michigan’s, and one of the nation’s, most experienced providers of heart care, ranking on U.S. News & World Report’s 2011-12 “America’s Best Hospitals” list for cardiology and heart surgery. The Beaumont Heart Center is a comprehensive, state-of-the-art facility that’s dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart problems. Beaumont’s Ernst Cardiovascular Center includes six specialty clinics offering advanced and minimally invasive treatments for heart valve disease, atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure, aortic aneurysm and dissection, plus preventive screening for adults and high school students. Beaumont’s Ministrelli Women’s Heart Center is the first in Michigan devoted exclusively to the prevention, diagnosis, and research of heart disease in women.
 |
|
Study author Dr. James Goldstein, right, |
